1996: At the Rose Bowl in Pasadena on April 13th, the Galaxy played host to the MetroStars
and won 2-1. The Galaxy's inaugural roster provided stars such as Cobi Jones,
Mauricio Cienfuegos, Robin Fraser, Eduardo Hurtado, goalkeeper Jorge Campos
and coach Lothar Osiander. In June, the Galaxy and Tampa Bay Mutiny played a game
at the Rose Bowl in front of 92,216 fans. After a fast start, the Galaxy would
struggle through the middle portion of the season, but pick it up in the last
third of the season to finish 19-13 and clinch the Western Conference regular
season championship. The Galaxy would defeat the San Jose Clash in three games
in the first round of the playoffs. In the next round, the Galaxy would sweep
the Dallas Burn and become MLS's first Western Conference representative in MLS
Cup.
1996 MLS Cup: Coming into New England's Foxboro Stadium, the Galaxy were favorites against DC United.
It would not be easy, however as the Boston area had dealt with massive
driving rainstorms all week and game day wouldn't be any different. Once the game
started, the weather was forgotten about and Cienfuegos scored the first MLS
Cup goal in the 5th minute. Chris Armas would score another goal in the 56th minute
and the Galaxy appeared certain to have the first championship in their grasp.
But the resilient DC United came back as Tony Sannah scored in the 73rd minute.
Shawn Medved evened the score with a goal in the 82nd minute and the game
headed for overtime. Marco Etcheverry would take a corner kick toward the Galaxy
penalty area and Eddie Pope headed the ball in the net to give United the championship
and send the Galaxy back home with nothing to show for their strong
performance.1997: In the early stages of the season, the Galaxy still seemed to be in pain over their
championship defeat. Starting the season losing 7 of their first 8, the club
fired Osiander and replaced him with assistant Octavio Zambrano. Under Zambrano,
the Galaxy would put together a strong run and qualify for the playoffs with
an even .500 record of 16-16. In the playoffs, though, the Galaxy would be upset
by the Dallas Burn in three games.1998: The Galaxy would start out the season strong and could not be stopped. They would
shatter records, including most goals scored in a season at 85 and win their first
Supporter's Shield with the best record in MLS history at 24-8 and a record
68 points. The Galaxy didn't stop there as they got revenge on the Dallas Burn
by sweeping and demolishing them. But in the Conference Final, their historic
season would fall down the black hole as they were swept by the expansion Chicago
Fire.1999: Like two years earlier, the Galaxy would struggle out of the gate, and would even
be in last place by the end of May. At that time, the Galaxy fired Octavio Zambrano,
and would name UCLA's Sigi Schmid coach to turn their season around. The
move seemed to work as the Galaxy would pick it up again and finish the season
at 20-12 and earned their second straight Western Conference championship. In
the first round, the Galaxy would shut down the Colorado Rapids in two games, not
allowing the Colorado to score a goal. In the next round, the Galaxy would be
tested by the Dallas Burn before dispatching them in the third game to advance
back to MLS Cup.
1999 MLS Cup: Under clear blue skies at New England's Foxboro Stadium, the Galaxy would be in a
rematch from three years earlier against DC United. The Galaxy wouldn't really
be able to get anything going this time as Jaime Moreno scored a goal for United
in the 19th minute. Just before halftime, goalkeeper Kevin Hartman would send
the dagger into his own team's heart as his teammate Steve Jolley played a ball
back to him. Using his feet, he dribbled away from one defender, then tried
to blast the ball up field, but stubbed his toe and the ball landed right at Ben
Olsen's feet and he slotted it in the empty net. The blunder would be the turning
point as United held on to preserve the shut out and again, send the Galaxy
home with no hardware.2000: In their second season under Sigi Schmid, the Galaxy would play well again and qualify
for the playoffs for the fifth straight year with a record of 14-10-8, earning
the 5th seed. In May, the Galaxy would help globalize MLS by signing Mexican
star Luis Hernandez. In the first round of the playoffs, the Galaxy would sweep
the Tampa Bay Mutiny to move onto the Conference Final. There, the club would
face the team they had battled with for first in the West, the Kansas City
Wizards. The Galaxy would tie the Wizards in the first game, and then beat them
in the second game, needing only one more point to advance to MLS Cup again. But
the Wizards would win the third game, and Miklos Molnar would send the Wizards
to MLS Cup with a goal in the series-tiebreaking session.
2001: In a season that would be cut short by the September 11th attacks, the Galaxy were
able to hold off a strong challenge from the San Jose Earthquakes and finish
the abbreviated season at 14-7-5 and atop the West. In the first round of the playoffs
as the 3rd seed, the Galaxy would fall behind in the third game against
the MetroStars. But the team would come together and beat the MetroStars in the
third game, and then Mauricio Cienfuegos netted a goal in the series-tiebreaker
to move on. In the next round, the Galaxy would tie the Chicago Fire in the
first game, before winning the next two in overtime to advance to their third MLS
Cup.
2001 MLS Cup: Certain that they would emerge victorious this time, the Galaxy would go head-to-head
with their in-state nemesis, the San Jose Earthquakes. It would be the first
time LA would play in MLS Cup that was not in Foxboro, as it was played this
time at Columbus Crew Stadium in the capital of Ohio. The Galaxy would grab the
lead first on a 21st minute goal by Luis Hernandez. The team was now determined
to hold onto the lead and grab their first championship. They were unable to
do so as the Quakes' star Landon Donovan evened the match with a goal in the 43rd
minute. There would be no score from that point on and the first overtime in
five years was needed to determine a champion. The Galaxy wanted to put all of
their demons to sleep in the extra session, but six minutes into the period,
San Jose's Dwayne DeRosario found a long pass, dribbled between two defenders and
scored on a shot, that Kevin Hartman got a piece of, but couldn't keep out.
Once again, the Galaxy failed to win it all and faced the all-too familiar feeling
of going home with no championship.2002: Another MLS Cup loss only made the Galaxy an extremely hungry team. They acquired
Guatemalan superstar Carlos "El Pescadito" Ruiz. Ruiz would make noise all over
the league as he helped the Galaxy to their second Supporter's Shield with a
record of 16-9-3 in their last season in the Rose Bowl. In the first round of the
playoffs, the Galaxy would be taken to the limit by the Kansas City Wizards
before LA prevailed and won in the third game. In the Conference Final, the Galaxy
would have no trouble with the Colorado Rapids as they swept them in two games
to advance to their second straight MLS Cup and third in four years.2002 MLS Cup: To say that the odds were against the Galaxy heading into the championship game would
be understated. They had been there three times before, losing each one. Two
of which were in overtime. The match would be played in Gillette Stadium in
Foxboro, Massachusetts, where they had failed twice before. The game was played
on October 20th, which was exactly six years to the date that LA lost to DC in
the inaugural MLS Cup in Foxboro. And just to make it a little trickier for the
Galaxy, they were facing the hometown New England Revolution with 61,316 fans
cheering for them. For much of the match, the two teams would not get anything
going as the championship match headed to overtime for the second straight year.
That only put more pressure on the Galaxy as they had been involved in the only
three MLS Cup matches that went into overtime. After coming very close to losing
again with a Winston Griffiths shot that hit the crossbar which would have
won it for New England, the Galaxy counterattacked and match MVP Carlos Ruiz
softly struck a shot that got by Revs goalkeeper Adin Brown and after three tries,
the Galaxy finally had a championship.
2003: Now that they finally had a trophy to their credit, the Galaxy opened their new stadium,
the Home Depot Center on June 7 and defeated the Colorado Rapids, 2-0.
But in order for their new home to be ready, the team had to play a record eight
games on the road to start the season and failed to win a game. In fact, the
Galaxy would finish the season without a win away from home the entire season.
After the season's final game, the Galaxy stood at 9-12-9 and had the final playoff
spot in the West. In their aggregate goal series with the San Jose Earthquakes,
they seemed well on their way to vindication for the MLS Cup loss two years
earlier as they held a 4 goals to 0 lead midway through the second game. A funny
thing happened as the Quakes scored four unanswered goals to force a series-tiebreaker.
In that session, the Quakes' Rodrigo Faria score to send the Quakes
onto the next round and send the Galaxy home wondering what might have been.
2004: Looking to return to the top of MLS, the Galaxy would go through a mediocre first
half of the season before three straight wins over the summer would get them back
into contention in the Western Conference. But from July 14 on, the Galaxy
would win only two more games, one in September and one in October. When the smoke
cleared, the Galaxy had a record of 11-9-10, good enough for 2nd in the West
and a playoff berth, remaining the only club in MLS history to have clinched
a playoff spot in every year of league's existence. In the playoffs, the Galaxy
withstood an early challenge from the Colorado Rapids to win the aggregate goal
series, 2-1, scoring twice in Game 2. In the conference final, the Galaxy's season
would come to an end in Kansas City with a 2-0 loss to Davy Arnaud and the
Wizards.2005: Having to share their stadium with expansion Chivas USA, the Galaxy's season would
be a roller coaster ride. After acquiring Landon Donovan, the Galaxy were expected
to return to the top of Major League Soccer. After winning 6 of their first
9 games, LA would only win two games in the next two months. The club would
rebound and go back into the playoff picture. The Galaxy alternated wins, losses
and ties the rest of the way to finish with a record of 13-13-6. They were the
lowest seeded playoff team in all of MLS. But once the playoffs got underway,
LA became a hot team. They made their 4-2 aggregate goal playoff series win over
the best team in the league, the San Jose Earthquakes, look easy. What made
it even more impressive was the fact that the Quakes were 19 points better than
LA in the regular season. In the conference final, the Galaxy kept their hot streak
going to their fifth MLS Cup, shutting out the Colorado Rapids, 2-0 on two
goals by Landon Donovan. 2005 MLS Cup: Considered lucky to be back in MLS Cup as the team with the worst record in the playoffs,
the Galaxy had earned a date with the New England Revolution in a rematch
of the title game three years earlier. Like the game three years earlier, this
would be a scoreless affair with very little breaks going either way. Near
the end of the first overtime period, Guillermo "Pando" Ramirez scored on a rebound
after Matt Reis punched away a corner kick. From there, the Galaxy kept the
Revolution off the scoreboard and won their second MLS Cup. Naturally, Ramirez
would be named Cup MVP for the goal.
2006: Right before the defense of their second MLS crown was to start, the Galaxy were
thrown into mourning as their general manager, Doug Hamilton, died of a heart attack
on the way back home from Costa Rica. Seemingly distracted by the untimely
death of their beloved front office leader, the Galaxy stumbled badly out of
the gate, winning twice in April, losing all of their contests in May and alternated
ties and loses throughout June. The team would do better, winning eight games
in the summer to find themselves back in playoff contention, but a four-game
September winless streak kept the Galaxy out of the playoffs for the first time
in MLS' 11-year history with a record of 11-15-6. In the middle of this disappointing
season, Steve Sampson was dismissed and replaced by Frank Yallop. The
following January, the Galaxy cashed in big, signing the world-famous David Beckham
to play for the team starting in the summer. 2007: If the previous season was considered a disappointment to the Galaxy and their fans,
this season would be even more difficult to digest. Early on, the team suffered
injuries to many key players and limped to last place in MLS. Of course, the
event that brought the eyes of the world to the Galaxy came on July 13, when
David Beckham arrived in Los Angeles amid much fanfare and took his roster spot
during a widely publicized press conference. To compliment his arrival, a midseason
logo and uniform change was made to look similar to his old team, Real Madrid.
The Galaxy would play in front of huge crowds the remainder of the year
as other teams' fans wanted a piece of viewing pleasure of him playing. Unfortunately,
he would suffer an ankle injury and would play in limited fashion. This
seemed to be iconic of LA's season as they finished at 9-14-7 and out of the playoffs
again. Afterwards, Cobi Jones, the Galaxy's original hero having been with
the club since its inception, announced his retirement and became an assistant
coach for the Galaxy.2008: After two straight years without the playoffs, expectations were high for the Galaxy
entering the season as David Beckham was fit healthy and in LA for the entire
season. However, a cloud of disappointment hung over the team all season, as
Beckham, who was named team captain clashed with Landon Donovan. Beckham who longed
for the competition of the European Premiere league continued to big a bust
in the MLS, while Donovan had a superb season leading the league in scoring,
but the Galaxy again put together a terrible season, missing the playoffs again
with a record of 8-13-9, enduring a long seven game losing streak that saw them
plunge from first place early in the season, to the bottom of the Western Conference.
Meanwhile off the field there was a management shake up as former US
National Coach Bruce Arena took over the team in the middle of the season, while
General Manager Alexi Lalas was dismissed.2009: In the first eleven weeks of the season, the Galaxy had a difficult time getting
results, winning one, losing one and tying nine times. The summer and back end
of the year was far kinder to the Galaxy as they would win four in a row at one
point and finish on top of the West with a record of 12-6-12. Because of so many
ties, the Galaxy only had a +5 goal difference. In the conference semis, the
Galaxy edged out their in-city rivals Chivas USA 3-2 on goal differential. In
the conference final, two power outages could not stop the Galaxy, defeating the
Houston Dynamo 2-0.2009 MLS Cup: In MLS Cup for the sixth time, The Galaxy headed north to Seattle to faceoff against
Real Salt Lake. LA controlled the tempo and it paid off in the 41st minute
when Mike McGee put his team on top. In the second half, RSL made its comeback
and Robbie Findlay provided the equalizer in the 64th minute. Almost immediately
after the goal, goalkeeper Donovan Ricketts had to come out of the game with
a hand injury from earlier in the game. The game would go scoreless after that
and would require a penalty shootout. The round would go back and forth into a
sudden death scenario where Robbie Russell score the winning kick and the star-laden
Galaxy watched the underdog Real Salt Lake celebrate their first title.
2010: Unlike the previous year, the Galaxy came soaring out of the gate, winning 10 of
their first 12 matches and wouldn't lose their first game until just before the
World Cup break. With much of their core players remaining, the Galaxy put it
on cruise control the rest of the season and finished in first place with a 17-7-8
record. The team would have no problem with the Seattle Sounders in the first
round of playoffs, dispatching them 3-1 on aggregate. But in the conference
final, FC Dallas would shut the Galaxy out 3-0.

2011: Rumors began flying from the start that this season would be David Beckham's swan
song in MLS. The club was determined to give him a solid chance to win a championship
and they accompanied him with Tottenham Hotspur star Robbie Keane and the
two did not disappoint their bosses. The Galaxy would breeze through the league,
losing only two of their first 23 matches and having two separate four game
winning streaks on the way to a stellar 19-5-10 record. In the playoffs, the
Galaxy would make quick work of the New York Red Bulls 3-1 on aggregate and then
storming past Real Salt Lake 3-1 in the conference final. 2011 MLS Cup: Back in MLS Cup for the seventh time in their history, the Galaxy looked to fan support
to help them as the match was played at the Home Depot Center against the
Houston Dynamo. The regular stars on the team wanted to help David Beckham and
Robbie Keane win their first title. In the game, the Galaxy controlled every
aspect of the game but a goal did not come until the 72nd minute from MVP Landon
Donovan on a breakaway. The Dynamo were unable to equalize and the Galaxy celebrated
a third MLS Cup winner in front of their hometown fans. 2012: With an MLS Cup title under his belt, David Beckham announced that this season would
be his last in MLS. Early on, the club looked to be in trouble as they won
only three of their first twelve matches and were in danger of not making the playoffs.
Fortunately after mid-June, the Galaxy would win twelve games and that
put the team in the West knockout round with a fourth place record of 16-12-6.
At home against the Vancouver Whitecaps, the Galaxy made their fans nervous as
the visitors' Darren Mattocks scored in the third minute and the defense held
off a charge for most of the match. But in the 69th minute, Mike Magee scored and
Landon Donovan scored a penalty kick four minutes later to send the Galaxy to
a date with league-leading San Jose Earthquakes. In that first leg, the Quakes'
Victor Bernardez scored a stoppage time goal to win 1-0, but the Galaxy rebounded
behind two goals by Robbie Keane and one by Mike Magee to hold off the Quakes'
late goal to move on 3-2 on aggregate. In the West Final, LA made quick work
of the Seattle Sounders, 4-2 in their series to move on to the club's eighth
MLS Cup.
2012 MLS Cup: By virtue of having the better record, the Galaxy got to play another MLS Cup at
home against the Houston Dynamo. In the forst half, the Dynamo held the better
of the play and it paid off in the 44th minute on a goal by Calen Carr. Not wanting
to lose at home in the title game, the Galaxy rebounded and fought back on
a goal by Omar Gonzalez on a cross in the 60th minute. Five muntes later, a handball
by a Dynamo player in his penalty area led to a penalty kick for the home
team and Landon Donovan converted it. The Galaxy's defense kept the Dynamo at
bay and Robbie Keane sealed the title for LA by converting a penalty kick in the
94th minute, sending David Beckham out with back-to-back MLS Championships.
Gonzalez earned MVP honors with his tying goal.
2013: With the David Beckham era in Los Angeles concluded, the Galaxy looked to become
the first ever team to win three championships in a row. And they seemed to be
on the right path, winning five of their first ten games before alternating wins,
losses and ties through the summer. A tough 2-2-4 stretch to end the season
gave LA a record of 15-11-8 and third place in the West. But after winning the
first leg of their conference semifinal round to Real Salt Lake 1-0, the team would
lose the next leg 2-0 to dash any hopes of a three-peat.2014: Midway through the year and amid unhappiness of being left off the USA's World Cup
roster, Landon Donovan announced that this would be his final year before retirement.
After a mediocre 4-3-3 start to the year, the galaxy would go on a torrid
stretch through the summer, going 8-2-1, including a five match winning streak
to propel themselves to a second place record of 17-7-10, three points behind
Seattle for the top spot. Following a scoreless draw in their first leg against
Real Salt Lake, the Galaxy rode the wave of a Donovan hat trick plus goals
by Robbie Keane and Marcelo Sarvas to cruise to the next round 5-0. In the West
Final against Seattle Sounders FC, Sarvas scored to help the home side win the
first leg 1-0, and Juninho scored in Seattle for the critical tiebreaking goal
to edge out the Sounders who made the aggregate 2-2 on two goals, but the away
goal rule sent the Galaxy on.2014 MLS Cup: In Landon Donovan's swansong match, the Galaxy walked out onto their home pitch at
StubHub Center for their league record ninth MLS Cup against old foe New England
Revolution, who they had beaten in this stage twice before. Early on, the Galaxy
had decent chances but couldn't put a ball past Bobby Shuttleworth as a scoreless
first half unfolded. But seven minutes into the second half, Gyasi Zardes
broke the ice and scored from a tight angle to make it 1-0. The Revs kept pressing
and eventually tied it on a 79th minute goal by Chris Tierney. The home
side survived a scare when Teal Bunbury took a shot that hit the crossbar just
before the game headed to extra time. Match MVP Robbie Keane salted the game away
with a goal off a long pass in the 111th minute and the Galaxy became the first
team in MLS history to raise five MLS Cups.

2015: With one hand
full of MLS Cup rings, the Galaxy looked to put one on the other hand. It would
not be easy as the retirement of Landon Donovan and injuries disrupting any
chemistry for the team. As such, the Galaxy would struggle to three wins in their
first twelve matches though an 8-2 stretch during the summer helped them in
the playoff run, which they qualified for in fifth place at 14-11-9. The Knockout
Round would be the end of the line for the Galaxy, losing 3-2 to Seattle Sounders
FC.